EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy

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https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/
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https://www.sonomapti.com/basic-emdr-training/
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https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewleeds/
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Episode 14 – New Directions in OCD Treatment with EMDR Therapy

Season 1 · Episode 14

Tuesday, September 1, 2026 • Duration 01:33:12

EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy explores the latest clinical research and practical applications of EMDR therapy hosted by Andrew M. Leeds, PhD, Director of Training for Sonoma Psychotherapy Training Institute. This podcast highlights the latest contributions to EMDR research, practice and training. Each episode breaks down current studies, emerging protocols, and implications for clinical practice. Whether you’re an EMDR-trained therapist, a mental health professional, or simply curious about trauma treatment, this podcast brings you science-based insights you can trust.

This episode examines the preliminary and promising evidence for using EMDR therapy to treat obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Host Dr. Andrew Leeds considers current clinical problems: although exposure and response prevention (ERP) and SSRIs are established first-line treatments, many people have incomplete improvement, discontinue treatment, or remain highly symptomatic—particularly when trauma histories, shame, or poor insight complicate recovery.

The episode reviews case reports, case series, and controlled studies of standard and adapted EMDR approaches for OCD. Several small studies report meaningful reductions in OCD symptoms. One randomized feasibility trial found EMDR and ERP similarly tolerable, without establishing that EMDR is equivalent or superior.

Dr. Leeds interviews psychologist Gian-Paolo Mazzoni about integrating EMDR with CBT and ERP for treatment-resistant, trauma-exposed OCD. Later, he interviews Dr. Paula Krentzel and Jennifer Tattersall about the Distancing Approach, which combines EMDR-based procedures with adaptive coping statements that help clients recognize intrusive experiences as OCD symptoms rather than facts or intentions. The episode closes with emerging research directions and a call for larger, rigorous trials.

References for this episode at: https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/index_files/EMDR_Research_News_September_2026.html

C. Paula Krentzel and Jennifer Tattersall

OCD-Informed Therapist Competencies (FREE) and Training Information

https://www.krentzel-tattersall.com/

Read the latest EMDR Research blog: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/⁠

Find our EMDR therapy training programs: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/basic-emdr-training/⁠

Subscribe to my newsletter: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/newsletter/⁠

Follow me on LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewleeds/

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Episode 13 - From Qualitative Insights to Meta‑Analyses: EMDR therapy at the Frontiers of Trauma Research

Season 1 · Episode 13

Saturday, August 1, 2026 • Duration 01:00:23

EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy explores the latest clinical research and practical applications of EMDR therapy hosted by Andrew M. Leeds, PhD, Director of Training for Sonoma Psychotherapy Training Institute. This podcast highlights the latest contributions to EMDR research, practice and training. Each episode breaks down current studies, emerging protocols, and implications for clinical practice. Whether you’re an EMDR-trained therapist, a mental health professional, or simply curious about trauma treatment, this podcast brings you science-based insights you can trust.

In this episode of “EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy,” EMDR trainer and researcher Andrew M. Leeds, PhD, reviews cutting‑edge EMDR therapy research for trauma, PTSD, depression, and identity—from qualitative studies to major meta‑analyses of non‑pharmacological interventions. Clinicians will hear about EMDR with children and teens, disaster survivors, courtroom testimony, low‑resource settings, and a detailed critique of the 2025 APA Clinical Practice Guideline for PTSD.

References for this episode at: https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/index_files/EMDR_Research_News_August_2026.html

Read the latest EMDR Research blog: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/⁠

Find our EMDR therapy training programs: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/basic-emdr-training/⁠

Subscribe to my newsletter: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/newsletter/⁠

Follow me on LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewleeds/

Episode 12: EMDR at the Frontiers of Medical Trauma and Grief

Season 1 · Episode 12

Wednesday, July 1, 2026 • Duration 44:42

EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy explores the latest clinical research and practical applications of EMDR therapy hosted by Andrew M. Leeds, PhD, Director of Training for Sonoma Psychotherapy Training Institute. This podcast highlights the latest contributions to EMDR research, practice and training. Each episode breaks down current studies, emerging protocols, and implications for clinical practice. Whether you’re an EMDR-trained therapist, a mental health professional, or simply curious about trauma treatment, this podcast brings you science-based insights you can trust.

In Episode 12 of EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy, host Dr. Andrew Leeds takes listeners inside the 2026 EMDR Europe Conference in Oslo to explore cutting-edge, yet-to-be-published EMDR treatment research on medical trauma and grief. During breaks between keynotes and workshops, Dr. Leeds interviewed investigators whose poster presentations highlight how EMDR is being adapted for complex medical and loss-related experiences.

The episode opens with a brief conversation with Dr. Zat Ciftci of EMDR Turkey, who explains how Turkish clinicians came to be so prominently represented in this year’s research program. Dr. Leeds then presents four focused interviews: Vanessa Grandjean’s pilot study on a brief EMDR “Train Protocol” for patients receiving chemotherapy for non‑metastatic breast cancer, Leyla Kaya’s quasi‑experimental group EMDR protocol (G‑TEP) for women coping with infertility, Krzysztof Beyger’s early EMDR R‑TEP intervention to reduce acute stress and prevent PTSD after myocardial infarction, and Sukran Pehlivan’s randomized controlled pilot study on an EMDR grief protocol for traumatic bereavement following earthquake loss.

Listeners also hear how to access references and further readings through SonomaPTI.com and the episode’s show notes. To support clinicians in integrating outcome data into everyday practice, the episode closes with an invitation to join a free beta of a measurement‑based care platform offering standard and EMDR‑relevant assessment tools, real‑time dashboards, and flexible workflows tailored for busy therapists.

Episode 11 - The Science of EMDR Therapy with Children and Teens

Season 1 · Episode 11

Monday, June 1, 2026 • Duration 01:07:06

EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy explores the latest clinical research and practical applications of EMDR therapy hosted by Andrew M. Leeds, PhD, Director of Training for Sonoma Psychotherapy Training Institute. This podcast highlights the latest contributions to EMDR research, practice and training. Each episode breaks down current studies, emerging protocols, and implications for clinical practice. Whether you’re an EMDR-trained therapist, a mental health professional, or simply curious about trauma treatment, this podcast brings you science-based insights you can trust.

In this month’s episode, I will first summarize six key studies to sketch the arc of the research evidence—and then I’ll be joined by Carolyn Settle to explore both the science of EMDR therapy with children as well as its application with children and teens. I will close the episode with a recently published study of young children that used defined protocols and fidelity ratings.

To access any of the original research papers mentioned in the podcast, you will find a complete list of references and links to each of these studies in the June 2026 blog on ⁠SonomaPTI.com⁠.

You will also find a listing of 14 Books on EMDR therapy with children and teens, 5 EMDR Grant Funding Sources and 2 sources for advanced ⁠child and adolescent training with Carolyn Settle.⁠ You can also go directly to SonomaPTI.com, click on the Blog section on the far right of the menu bar and then select the ⁠June 2026 ⁠listings.

References for this episode at:

https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/index_files/EMDR_Research_News_June_2026.html

Read the latest EMDR Research blog: ⁠⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/⁠⁠

Find our EMDR therapy training programs: ⁠⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/basic-emdr-training/⁠⁠

Subscribe to my newsletter: ⁠⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/newsletter/⁠⁠

Follow me on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewleeds/⁠

Episode 10 - From Hypertension to Domestic Violence: EMDR at the Heart of Trauma Care

Season 1 · Episode 10

Friday, May 1, 2026 • Duration 44:51

EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy explores the latestclinical research and practical applications of EMDR therapy hosted by Andrew M. Leeds, PhD, Director of Training for Sonoma Psychotherapy Training Institute.

This podcast highlights the latest contributions to EMDR research, practice and training. Each episode breaks down current studies, emerging protocols, and implications for clinical practice. Whether you’re an EMDR-trained therapist, a mental health professional, or simply curious about trauma treatment, this podcast brings you science-based insights you can trust.

In this episode, we explore how EMDR therapy is being tested and refined across a wide range of clinical frontiers. You’ll learn about large-scale meta-analyses on the treatment of depression, anxiety, and childhood trauma, early interventionprotocols for recent critical incidents, and innovative applications for treating hypertension and addictive sexual behavior that link symptom change to shifts in autonomic regulation.

We will consider a psychoanalytic understanding of EMDR therapy that speaks directly to clinicians grounded in Freudian and Kleinian models, and we’ll close with a powerful, integrative EMDR-based approach to treating the enduring impact of domestic violence against women.

Taken together, these reports invite us to think more deeply about how EMDR operates not only on distressing memories, but on developmental trajectories, relational patterns, and the mind–body systems that sustain suffering and resilience. As you listen, I invite you to consider how these findings might inform your own clinical decision making, from case formulation and modality choice to how you talk with your clients about what EMDR therapy can reliably offer and what it cannot yet promise.

References for this episode at: https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/index_files/EMDR_Research_News_May_2026.html

Read the latest EMDR Research blog:

Episode 9 - EMDR: Scaling Healing From War Zones to Waiting Rooms

Season 1 · Episode 9

Saturday, April 4, 2026 • Duration 01:03:02

EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy explores the latest clinical research and practical applications of EMDR therapy hosted by Andrew M. Leeds, PhD, Director of Training for Sonoma Psychotherapy Training Institute. This podcast highlights the latest contributions to EMDR research, practice and training. Each episode breaks down current studies, emerging protocols, and implications for clinicalpractice. Whether you’re an EMDR-trained therapist, a mental health professional, or simply curious about trauma treatment, this podcast brings you science-based insights you can trust.

This month, we explore how EMDR therapy is being adapted and scaled to meet trauma where it lives: in hospitals, clinics, homes, and war zones. From meta-analytic evidence on brief, often online group EMDR interventions for healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, to innovative group protocols that help overstretched public health systems reach people on long waiting lists, these studies show how EMDR can be delivered efficiently without sacrificing depth or safety. We look at parents of children with neurodevelopmental disorders receiving intensive group EMDR over three days, older adults using EMDR to reclaimmovement and daily functioning from chronic pain and kinesiophobia, and Ukrainian clinicians applying EMDR-informed, low-threshold trauma support in the midst of ongoing war. We conclude with a conceptual deep dive into the EMDR Toolbox Method for complex PTSD and dissociation, which offers a structured way of mapping internal states and guiding treatment in highly complexpresentations.

Together, these reports trace a consistent theme: EMDR therapy as a flexible, scalable approach capable of reaching large and diverse populations while still honoring theindividual stories and nervous systems behind the data.

References for this episode at: https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/index_files/EMDR_Research_News_April_2026.html

Read the latest EMDR Research blog: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/⁠

Find our EMDR therapy training programs:

Episode 8 - How EMDR Therapy Works: The Science of Healing and Neuroplasticity

Season 1 · Episode 8

Sunday, March 1, 2026 • Duration 01:02:46

This episode explores the question “How does EMDR therapy work?” with its focus on EMDR’s use of bilateral eye movements. Other forms of bilateral stimulation are also discussed including kinesthetic stimulation, such as the Butterfly Hug and bilateral auditory stimulation. Drawing on insights from his textbook, A Guide to the Standard EMDR Therapy Protocols (2nd ed.) and an EMDRIA Conference presentation, Dr. Andrew Leeds reviews the latest research studies that clarify and strengthen our understanding of EMDR therapy’s six key mechanisms of action. Listeners can access a related video, courses, and a free PDF through links in the show notes or from the March 2026 blog post at AndrewLeeds.net.

EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy explores the latest clinical research and practical applications of EMDR therapy hosted by Andrew M. Leeds, PhD, Director of Training for Sonoma Psychotherapy Training Institute. This podcast highlights the latest contributions to EMDR research, practice and training. Each episode breaks down current studies, emerging protocols, and implications for clinical practice. Whether you’re an EMDR-trained therapist, a mental health professional, or simply curious about trauma treatment, this podcast brings you science-based insights you can trust.

References and links for this episode at: https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/index_files/EMDR_Research_News_March_2026.html

Watch or download the video for Dr. Leeds’s EMDRIA Conference presentation on “Mechanisms of action in EMDR therapy”: https://sonomapti.gumroad.com/l/xzlDL

Download the free PDF from Dr. Leeds’s EMDRIA Conference presentation on “Mechanisms of action in EMDR therapy”:

Episode 7 - EMDR Therapy for Adolescents

Season 1 · Episode 7

Sunday, February 1, 2026 • Duration 58:21

EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy explores the latest clinical research and practical applications of EMDR therapy hosted by Andrew M. Leeds, PhD, Director of Training for Sonoma Psychotherapy Training Institute. This podcast highlights the latest contributions to EMDR research, practice and training. Each episode breaks down current studies, emerging protocols, and implications for clinical practice. Whether you’re an EMDR-trained therapist, a mental health professional, or simply curious about trauma treatment, this podcast brings you science-based insights you can trust.

The February 2026 podcast reviews 14 new research reports. This includes 6 studies on adolescents, 3 meta-analyses, 2 randomized controlled studies, a laboratory study of a potential alternative to bilateral stimulation, a theoretical model on the role of exposure in trauma therapies, and a study protocol on the EMDR treatment of depression. All this and more in Episode 7 of EMDR: The Science behind the Therapy.

References for this episode at: https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/index_files/EMDR_Research_News_Month_2026.html

Read the latest EMDR Research blog: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/⁠

Find our EMDR therapy training programs: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/basic-emdr-training/⁠

Subscribe to my newsletter: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/newsletter/⁠

Follow me on LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewleeds/

EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy – Details, episodes & analysis

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EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

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Other18

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Publication history

Latest published episodes

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Spotify

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Other18

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